If you think you already know everything about grilling, you may just be surprised about how much you are about to learn. Of course, everyone looks forward to a juicy and delicious steak or barbecue dish, but sometimes it doesn’t come out as expected.
Even if you have been grilling for many years, there are still some grilling secrets that you may not know. In addition, you can improve your grilling techniques to get better results.
Here are some useful tips that will help with your next grilled dish.
1. Soak Your Skewers in Water
You will need skewers for your kebabs, and even though most people will prefer to invest in the expensive steel skewers, some people make do with wooden ones. It doesn’t matter whether you use the costly heavy irons or the bamboo skewers; they are all flammable. Your skewers will be in direct contact with the open flame, and this could be a problem. The only way you can go about it to avoid the skewers from lighting up is to soak them in cold water. You can leave them soaked in water for up to 30 minutes. This way, they will stay wet and won’t burn easily. The wet skewers will be easy to carry out without falling apart on the grill.
2. Use Onion To Clean Your Grill
This might sound strange to some, but if you are familiar with the unconventional way of cleaning grills, you know just how effective onions are for cleaning. Normally, people prefer to use the traditional wire brush to clean, but this method is quite dangerous. Sometimes the wire bristles can come off and end up in your food. You can clean your grill instead by cutting up half of the onion and rubbing it thoroughly across the grate using your hand. If the grill is still scorching, you can rub the onion using a cloth or tongs. The moisture from the onion contains a certain level of acid that can easily remove stuck food particles. Also, the onions will leave an amazing aroma on your grill, which adds to the flavor of your food.
3. Grill Veggies Separately From Your Meat
It might look appealing for the eyes to see your cubes of meat grilled alongside your colorful veggies when preparing your kebab, but the taste would be disappointing. Most times, it takes longer to cook veggies, unlike your meat. If you end up cooking the two together, you will likely have undone veggies or over-cooked meats. The best way to make your kebabs will be to cook the vegetables separately from meat skewers. You can then pair them together after they have reached their doneness.
4. Learn To Cook With Indirect Heat
When buying grills, you will notice how manufacturers show the amount of heat you get from the grill. The truth is, your cooking won’t require that level of heat. Most professional chefs prefer to cook with indirect heat, and they have mastered this art to get the best results. If you want to get indirect heat from a charcoal grill, you will need to mound the charcoal on one side. For gas grills, you will be lighting one side but not the other. You then put your meat on the part that is unheated before closing the lid. This way, the heat circulates inside your meat, cooking it from inside without burning the outside of your steak.
5. Make Your Grill a Smoker
You can take advantage of the indirect heating method to grill your food like you are using a smoker. When you set up your indirect heat, place some hardwood pieces inside the foil or pouch before placing your meat on the grate. Next, put your meat on the cos side of your grill and then close its lid. The smoke will add to the flavor of your meat and will taste different. You can use this method for your poultry, pork, and fish dishes.
6. Par-Cook Your Meats
The time it takes to cook meat varies depending on the parts. If you are grilling small chops of meat or burgers, it cooks quicker than the larger parts of beef. It also takes a while longer to grill ribs, birds, and some parts of pork. You can save half of the time it would take for your meat to stay on the grill when you par-cooking it. You can do this by cooking in the oven, microwave oven or slow cooker, but you should not boil the meat. Boiling will take away the flavor from the meat. However, with sausages, you can make an exception because you need to poach them before cooking in the grill so that the juices come out.
7. Grill Fish Using Citrus Slices
If you didn’t know this before, using lemon juice on your grilled fish makes it taste a lot better than plain grilling. Fish also has the habit of falling apart on the grill and sticking to the grates. However, when you add a few slices of citrus or lemon juice, it prevents the fish from sticking to your grill. It also makes it easier for you to turn the fish to the other side when grilling. The delicious taste of the citrus also mixes with the dish to bring out unique flavors. The aroma is a bonus, and you can also add the citrus slices to garnish your dish after grilling.
Conclusion
Did you know that grilling can be dangerous for your health? Read this guide on healthy grilling, it will give you ideas for a healthy BBQ.
Everyone loves a delicious grilled recipe, and it gets better when you know the little tricks to improve your grilling techniques. Most chefs know this secret, and that is what makes you want to eat in the best restaurants. You can make steakhouse-quality barbecue when you know the mistakes to avoid and the secret to a better-tasting dish.
Additionally, the grill is also an essential part of your technique. Of course, you wouldn’t get good results if your grill doesn’t have good heat retention, enough burners, or other features that you need. If you don’t have a grill already, you can see a good collection of grills and accessories at https://outdoorcookingpros.com
